Analysis Of 'Brother Can You Spare A Dime'

Edgar Harburg was the one who wrote the lyrics for this song and Harold Arlen was the composer. The reason it’s so easy to tie in the lyrics to this song to the problems of its era is mainly due to Harburg’s reputation. Harburg was effected by the Depression just as like most Americans. Before song writing, He started out as the Co-Owner of an electrical appliance business, but that business went bankrupt when the Depression started. In a sense, the Depression was a bit of a blessing to Harburg, as it encouraged him to pursue his career as a lyricist. Harburg was a very talented writer; he earned his fame through writing other popular songs like “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime” and “April in Paris” in 1932 (Allmusic). Harburg drew his inspiration from America’s and his misfortune due to the Depression. His inspiration allowed him to write “Over the Rainbow”, with help from the composer. But Arlen reportedly had trouble composing the music for this song. He didn’t want to make the tune too fast because it wasn’t supposed to be an overly cheerful song. He also didn’t want it to be too slow because it wasn’t supposed to be depressing (Harold Arlen.com). Eventually, Harburg and he finally agreed to settle on the contemplative tune we know today.

With every aspect of our lives we are making a point, arguing a belief, or refuting some other aspect of our existence. Aesthetic pieces, most avidly poems and songs, argue a message both in the lyrics and in the meaning posed between the lines. “American Pie,” in a multitude of ways, argues that American lives and memories are closely intertwined with the music of the time period. Not only does “American Pie” argue a message it also pulls many generations together. Today, thirty years after the initial release, “American Pie” still has an effect in our music and continues to be popular with all age groups. Don McLean accomplishes this task through using the context of the time period, placement of words, the words

“The great war proved how confused the world is, the depression is proving it again.” When reading John Updike’s short story “Son” (2) pg.1070 I can see the affects the great depression had on his family. When reading through it I found out the affects it had on his parent’s confidence. An example of how his father were affected is “His father’s old sorrow bore him down into depression, into a hatred of life.” (2) pg. 1072 As a result of his father not enjoying life his health began to decline as if on que. John held a job as a paper boy at a very young age in order to help provide for his family during the hard times. In Johns past, he was surrounded by the gloom of his father and it has shaped his style of writing into

Initially, I found Singer’s writing to be absurd and unrealistic. However, these emotions led me to reflect on myself and humanity in general. I was surprisingly led to the conclusion that Singer is correct in the sheer foundation of his argument. Ultimately the main reason why I originally felt offended by Singer’s writing is that he blames and inflicts guilt on us as readers. I do not necessarily agree with Singer’s approach, nor do I think guilt is necessary to his argument. This article must be relevant to me in at least some of its notions if Singer’s words can influence my emotions. If this were not the case, the article could simply be brushed off and forgotten much like an informative essay could. The main reason that Singer’s writing is offensive to readers is because it forces us to consciously realize that people are

Trying times always push society to its limits and with that, show society’s true nature. This is displayed best in Ayn Rand’s Anthem and John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men; one set in a post-apocalyptic age where man struggles to rebuild and the other set during the Great-Depression. By comparing Ayn Rand’s message concerning the individual in society in Anthem to John Steinbeck’s in Of Mice and Men it is clear that one has a main message that society is a burden to the individual, while the other’s message is that society helps out the individual.

Seventy-five years later, John Steinbeck’s novel, The Grapes of Wrath, and the film adaptation, are still relevant to life now, because there are several relatable themes running through the book and movie. The novel depicts the about the economic inequality of the 1840s and 1930s. Yet still today, there is economic inequality. The wealthier people with jobs also look down on the poorer, unemployed people. Perhaps there is a fear that the jobless will come in and steal jobs. However, the American dream is clearly present in the novel and has been throughout history.

John Steinbeck’s novel, The Grapes of Wrath, takes place during the Great Depression, a time when troubled and distressed American men and women lived; a time of poverty and an economic crisis. When change is thought upon, it is to be thought of new life and new experiences. The Great Depression is the kind of change that replaces a part of American living with “ Somepin’s happening. I went up an’ I looked, an’ the houses is all empty, an’ the lan’ is empty, an’ this whole country is empty” ( Steinbeck 94). In his work, Steinbeck presents the hardships that Americans had to go through by being mindful of particular aspects which makes the reader understand the characters’ distress. For example, the landscape of the farm lands. Even though the land has its brutality, it grows to be the scenery for humans to be able to recognize and consider their troubles about work and life in general. With these concerns, there are differences between the people who are accustomed to the landscape and admire it, and those who do not agree with it. In the novel, Steinbeck uses attributes of class conflict and injustice as a way of presenting and socially commenting that the Great Depression brought attention to more problems beyond the idea of poverty.

The Great Depression affected many Americans throughout the 1930s. Many people had no source of income and had no other choice but to travel and find new jobs. In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, George Milton and Lennie Small wander through California in search of a new job that would help them make enough money to live their American dream on “the fatta the lan’”(Steinbeck 14). George and Lennie’s hard work and determination is not enough for them to live their dream. Lennie has a mental disability that slows the two friends down from living their dream; they have to run from job to job because of Lennie’s unintentional actions.

One might say that the Great Depression was a time of despair and feeling vulnerable from those who lived through it. However, writings have shown that some Americans during this era did not give up and had an optimistic view as opposed to a pessimistic view. In “Anacostia Flats” by John Dos Passos, it shows that the ex- service men during the Great Depression had a sense of determination for getting their bonus. The film 42nd Street demonstrated the tenacious spirit of Americans who worked on a play during The Great Depression. Meridel Le Seur’s “Women in the Breadlines” depicted the reality of struggling without employment but having the will to keep trying. During these times, society had not surrendered as several of them stood up for

Anyone who reads John Steinbeck would know that everyday was a struggle, for those who lived during the great depression.

John Steinbeck’s novel, The Grapes of Wrath, was first written and later published in the 1939. From the time of its publication to date, the exemplary yet a simple book has seen Steinbeck win a number of highly coveted awards including Pulitzer Prize in 1940 and later on Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962. Set at the time of the Great Depression, the book most remarkably gives a descriptive account of the Oklahoma based sharecropper Joad’ poor family in the light of economic hardship, homelessness, and the impacts of worst changing agricultural and financial sectors to the poor in America then. Throughout the chapters, the book brings into sharp focus the dehumanizing individual lives of the lower class during the time of Great Depression

McElvaine book reveals a collection of letters of the forgotten men, women, and children who suffered through the Great Depression. McElvaine puts the reader in direct contact with Depression victims, showing a feeling of what it was like to live through this dilemma. The writers of the letters came from different kinds of people:middle-class people, blacks, rural residents, the elderly, and children. By looking at the Great Depression from the perspectives of its victims of diverse backgrounds and McElvaine gives the reader a better understanding of their struggles on a more personal level.

I believe that through the Great Depression taught Americans to be thankful for what they do have, even if it isn’t a lot because everything can be taken away in a short amount of time. These passages all have this one thing in common because in all of them the people seem thankful for what they have, even though it isn’t a lot. For example, in the passage Digging In, the family is extremely thankful for the 25 cent piece of ice that they had. They said,” it was our glistening prize.” I don’t think people nowadays would be that thankful for quarters worth of ice, but for a family struggling through the great depression; It was a

The Great Depression broke down security and belief in American society during the early 20th century and brought out hidden prejudices. The once optimistic mood during the Roaring 20’s turned to pain. The dire economic situation caused Americans to return to past social stigmas where certain groups of people were seen as inferior; as a result, the American Dream, where everyone could seek their ideal of success, was reduced to merely a dream. John Steinbeck observed these changes in social behavior and witnessed the plight of many Americans during the Great Depression. Like in his later work, The Grapes of Wrath, he was inspired by his environment to expose the lives of people during the Great Depression using Of Mice and Men. Steinbeck observed these changes in social behavior and witnessed the plight of many Americans during the Great Depression. Steinbeck demonstrates in Of Mice and Men through the characters that the American Dream was naturally discriminatory towards certain groups of people because of common perceptions held during that period.

In John Steinbeck’s tragic, mangled novel, The Grapes of Wrath, the reader is shipped off into the heart of the great Dust Bowl in the American Midwest in the peak of American hardship. Through his use of realism in the era of the modern age, Steinbeck reveals the hardships that were faced by common American citizens during the Great Depression, and utilizes the Joad family in an effort to depict the lives of the farmers who had to flee to new land in the high hopes of a new and better life. The obstacles the family faces are similar to what countless other families had to face, with very little of the population able to successful thrive at the time. By utilizing the empowering endeavors unforeseen by these poor families and the meteorological catastrophes overlooking the Midwest, Steinbeck illustrates the nationwide panic faced by many Americans in an effort to delineate their confusion and uncertainty.